Note: The following appears in the SMU football gameday program.
Wide receiver Tristan Martinez moved over 4,500 miles away to chase his dream of playing football at the Division I level. The Honolulu, Hawaii native participated in Clemson camps throughout high school and walked onto the team in the summer of 2023.
Martinez’s determination was recently rewarded with a full scholarship, and he hopes his journey at Clemson inspires others to chase their dreams, no matter the circumstances.
“I hope I can inspire others who might not start off as highly recruited players, or four or five-star players with a ton of offers, that if they work hard and are committed to the task and keep a positive mindset every day, they can work from being a walk-on to earning a scholarship.”
On the last day of fall camp, Head Coach Dabo Swinney pulled Martinez aside and started chatting with him about how he was doing personally, what was going on in his life and his postgraduate plans. Martinez has aspirations of working in professional sports as a lawyer, which he told Swinney during their recent conversation.
“I told Coach Swinney I wanted to be a lawyer and he said he was really excited for me. And then he asked ‘Well, how are you going to pay for law school?’ And I said, ‘I guess I’m going to pay for that the same way I did for undergrad…taking out student loans.’”
What Swinney told him next would change his life forever. He revealed that Martinez no longer needed to worry about finances because he had earned a full scholarship.
“I was absolutely stunned…I was not expecting him to say that. He said that he saw the hard work that I put in and the dedication and commitment that I showed to the team, and that over the past few years, he’s watched me grow into the best version of myself, as a football player and as a man, and he wanted to reward that.”
Martinez not only takes pride in being a Tiger football player, but more importantly in his heritage as an Asian-American and Pacific Islander. He touched on the challenges of being the only Asian-American player on the team, but that it is now something he holds in high regard and hopes encourages others.
“I want kids back home who look like me to see someone who looks like them in the positions that they aspire to, whether it’s in college athletics or in the legal field. I hope my story can serve as an inspiration to kids from home and from anywhere who dream of playing college football and who might have been told by some people that they don’t look the part. I hope my story motivates them to overcome their fears and to go for it.”
When asked what advice he would give his freshman-year self, he spoke about constantly putting in the work and acting honorably, even when it feels impossible or when it goes under the radar.
“I would tell him that things are going to get easier, and they did. I would also tell him to keep working and keep the same consistent mindset, even if he feels like he isn’t getting noticed and even if he feels like his hard work isn’t getting recognized.”
Martinez is an example of trusting the process and doing things the right way, the Clemson way. He hopes his story inspires youngsters for years to come.
